Cold-fueled storm leaves trail of hail, flooding

Heavy rain, thunderstorms and hail barreled through Cape Cod Thursday afternoon and evening causing some flooding and power outages in the region, according to the National Weather Service in Taunton.

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By HAVEN Orecchio-Egresitz

capecodtimes.com

By HAVEN Orecchio-Egresitz

Posted Aug. 8, 2014 at 2:00 AM

By HAVEN Orecchio-Egresitz

Posted Aug. 8, 2014 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

Heavy rain, thunderstorms and hail barreled through Cape Cod Thursday afternoon and evening causing some flooding and power outages in the region, according to the National Weather Service in Taunton.

While most towns on the Cape were greeted with pea- and dime-size hail, some areas including Harwich Port and Hyannis saw quarter-size hail, which is categorized by the weather service as severe weather, meteorologist Eleanor Vallier-Talbot said.

The last time it hailed on the Cape was April 23, but that storm was not as widespread as Thursday's, which covered most of southern New England and parts of New Hampshire, Vallier-Talbot said.

A severe thunderstorm warning issued by the weather service was in effect until 6 p.m. Thursday and people were urged to stay indoors.

Meteorologists also issued a marine warning advising boaters to stay off the water.

Thursday afternoon. A pilot flying over Martha's Vineyard reported a waterspout 10 miles northwest of Aquinnah.

According to the weather service, the last time a waterspout was spotted in New England was in 2011 on Narragansett Bay in Rhode Island. They are very dangerous to boaters and could easily flip a vessel, Vallier-Talbot said.

If waterspouts hold together and hit land, they could turn into a tornado, she said.

On land, the storm caused some minor damage to trees, but no injuries were reported Thursday night.

In South Dennis, the Department of Public Works was notified about flooding on Piccadilly Road, according to police. An electrical fire on Cyprus Road is also believed to have been started by lightning in the area, which blew a surge protector in the house, according to the Dennis Fire Department.

In West Yarmouth, lightning struck a transformer on Crowell Road and knocked out power in the neighborhood, the weather service said. A large tree limb fell in the middle of Lookout Road in Yarmouth Port, but the road was passable, police said.

The storm, which headed off the Cape and toward the islands by sunset, was caused by cooler temperatures lingering about 10,000 feet above the ground for the past couple of days.

"There was some cold air upstairs,” Vallier-Talbot said. “That's more wintertime weather.”